Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
The Bargo Land was the spacious land between Cairo and the Great Pyramid of Giza, spanning over a hundred kilometers. The land had always been the field of battle between humans and the undead, a war that had been going on for thousands of years.
The undead in the Bargo Land never stopped coming, the reason behind it very simple. Since the battle kept going, there would be a lot of deaths, and thus a lot of new undead rising. It was a never-ending loop constantly happening across Egypt!
There was a long gradient starting around seventy kilometers from the Great Pyramid of Giza. The slope was like the hand of a compass, identifying the time when the deathlight would start shining.
Every sunset, if anyone stood at the edge of the Sunset Valley and looked up, they would see the sunlight spreading across the valley perfectly, making it look like a sparkling golden sea.
Unfortunately, the spectacular phenomenon only brought boundless fear and uneasiness to the people of Cairo. When the sunlight disappeared from the valley, the deathlight of the Pyramid would start pouring down on the Bargo Land, like a flag representing the Kingdom of the Dead…
The deathlight followed the routines of day and night, just like the sun and the stars. The duration of the dazzling sunlight down the Sunset Valley constantly changed over months and years, but normally, every five years, there would be a time when the deathlight would last longer than usual, and that was normally when the greatest battles between Cairo and the undead took place!
They were currently in the Black Season, the five-year time when the deathlight would last the longest. The enemy challenging the city of Cairo was the Pyramid of Khafre, the second-largest Pyramid in Egypt.
The real undead had not shown up yet. Currently, only the two main demon species in Egypt, the Gorgons and the Medusae, were active. The real torture for the Egyptians was only beginning as the Black Season arrived!
——
At a unique spot in the Sunset Valley stood an ancient shrine that was part of some ancient cultural heritage.
The Egyptians were similar to the people living along the Yellow River and the Yangtze Plain who had worshiped the totem beasts. They used to rely on the protection of special creatures. The Sunset Shrine was one of the greatest altars for the ancient Egyptians to offer their sacrifices to their god.
Then came the era of the pharaohs, who overthrew the ancient civilization and established a magic civilization in Egypt. However, after they turned into undead as they died, they would not give up their control over the golden land.
The Sunset Shrine had existed for a very long time. It was magnificent, yet extremely run-down. It had been a while since anyone set foot into it, mainly because many Hunters had died strange deaths before they could get close enough to the Sunset Shrine.
“Rumors say that the spirits of the ancient gods have abandoned us humans because the pharaohs abandoned them first. Anyone that comes close to the shrine will be punished,” Chad said as they were walking.
The Sunset Shrine had all kinds of rumors and mysteries that had remained unsolved to this day. There were people that went exploring inside the Sunset Shrine, but they discovered that the Sunset Shrine was an endless maze, similar to the pyramids. If an ordinary person set foot inside it, they would never come out again. Some barely escaped from the place, but they all ended up with empty hands.
“Is this Sunset Shrine related to the Pyramids?” Mo Fan asked.
The group had reached the Sunset Valley, and were only around twenty kilometers away from the Sunset Shrine. It was currently sunset, so they just happened to see a red sun setting up the slope. It looked like they would eventually reach the sun if they kept heading up the slope!
The Sunset Shrine happened to stand in the same direction as the sun. From afar, it looked like the shrine was built for a god of sun. It was quite likely that the ancient god whom the Egyptians once worshiped was somehow related to the sun.
Mo Fan remembered that before Greece was ruled by the Parthenon Temple, the Greeks used to worship ancient gods, too. The Tyrant Titans were said to be the descendants of the ancient gods. He could not help but wonder if the ancient gods in Egypt were related to the ancient gods in Greece.
As a matter of fact, these gods were most likely some powerful creatures in the past, just like the Totem Beasts in China!
When the era of magic came, many countries overthrew these ancient civilizations and chose to believe in their own magical power instead.
“It is said that the deathlight is the power of the ancient gods that the pharaohs stole. I’m not too sure how they were related, but we all knew the pharaohs overthrew the civilization worshiping the ancient gods,” Chad said.
“Is the ancient god still inside the Sunset Shrine, then?” Mo Fan had to ask.
Chad’s brother Benz burst out laughing. He explained, “There’s no god in Egypt anymore, not even the descendants of the gods. Isn’t China the same as us? You no longer have the Totem Beasts… the Sunset Shrine is just a cultural heritage, and has most likely become a Medusa’s nest.”
They suddenly heard the cry of an eagle as they approached the Sunset Shrine. Mo Fan lifted his gaze and saw a white eagle diving at him.
Just as Mo Fan was feeling confused, the white eagle opened its claw and dropped a tube.
Mo Fan belatedly remembered he had a Hunter Mistress providing him with assistance remotely. She would relay her latest findings to him immediately via the Messenger Eagles.
The Bargo Land had no mobile coverage. A mobile phone would only serve as a watch and a torchlight here. The only way to relay messages was using this ancient method!
Demon creatures would not attack the Messenger Eagles, so they were perfect for delivering messages to travelers in the wild.
Mo Fan opened up the tube. There was a document inside.
“What does it say?” Zhao Manyan asked.
“She says that the rumors about the people dying close to the Sunset Shrine is real. The bodies of anyone who gets within three kilometers to the Sunset Shrine will start to rot. They haven’t figured out the reason behind it. She’s asking to us to be more careful!” Mo Fan read out the information from the Hunter Mistress, Anna.
“Maybe they are just exaggerating?” Mentor Vani wondered aloud.
Mo Fan shook his head. He showed a photograph attached to the document to Vani.
Mentor Vani glanced at it, examining the picture of a severely rotted Hunter’s body. It was so badly decayed that only his eyes remained on his face.
“The photograph means that the rumors are real. Three kilometers… are we within three kilometers of the Sunset Shrine now?” Mu Bai said.
“But… what could be the cause of it?”
“Let’s worry about that later. If the ancient civilization vanished a few thousand years ago, it’s unlikely that such a strong Curse is still around. Besides, aren’t the Medusae active around there? I doubt the ancient god is particularly friendly toward them!” Mo Fan chose to keep going. He did not hesitate just because of the new information.